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Topic: Could Droid Factory Survive.... (Read 1196 times)

I was thinking about the "Build-A-Droid" pack-ins the other night. Mostly about how much I missed them, ultimately, and how they were persuasive in getting me to buy figures just to finish a droid here and there.

But I was thinking too, how many droids can you crank out? At this point it's rough... I could see generic battledroids making it into the ranks, but will people care? I can see some more EU droids or whatnot, but I was thinking maybe the "Build-A-_____" concept could live on in another way?

Build a Clone? Build a Trooper?

Something where you could mix/match parts may go a long way too... Clones, while having some color or gear variety, ultimately would mix/match well if Hasbro planned out the idea in advance enough.

They've not said BAD can't come back, just that it's on hold during Vintage... At today's prices, getting something extra with a figure is about the only way to feel like you're getting a bonus or any bang for your buck. Extra gear on a figure like the Gammie makes the price easier to stomach, but likewise you have a figure like Logray where $8.99 + is stickershock.

After reading your post first I think about some build a droid we want to see on a single blister, like BGJ38 or the black dark trooper (too big for traditional blister)

I would like to see some build a trooper figures like the biker scout, black stormtrooper, a tvc update of the hoth snowtrooper commander, rebel technician. I prefer OT characters or EU from Ot timeline, considering most OT updates are kitbashes (swap heads, different paintjobs on uniforms, etc)

I would support the build a trooper line, but perhaps this could be the end of the beloved Vintage style card, cause, there isnīt room for extra pieces. A proof for this argument:

When tvc line launches Revenge of the Jedi card, the repack of tlc Slave Leia comes without the extra torso.

The charm of vintage style cards lies too much on the big photos of the characters, and today on the scanning of vintage pictures to a dvd or blu ray definition on print.

BTW, build a trooper would be an idea for a wise developement, a chance to redefine and aproximates issued figures to the always wanted "definitive versions".

I like the Build-A-Trooper concept. Really, any kind of build a figure would be appealing to me. I've been collecting since POTF2 launched back in '95 and the BAD concept has been the best pack-in/figure offer by far. Droids are cool in that you can mix and match parts on several different designs, so doing this with troopers makes sense. The only fault here is that we already have multiple versions of almost every trooper and they don't mix and match well unless you go with Clones, and I'm not a big fan of even more clone offerings.

Honestly, the ideal for me would be some kind of Build-an-Alien, with mostly humanoid characters from the Cantina, Jabba's Palace, or EU lore (humanoid meaning they have 4 limbs and a head). You could switch the heads/torso/limbs around and make all kinds of different figures. This would be a cool way to update lots of older figures (Yakface, Snaggletooth, Hammerhead, etc.), but still give you that mix and match fun.

I like the idea, but the only problem would be the lack of army-building ability. A unique trooper would work, but non one would want to buy ten Han Solo figures to build a squad of ten troopers. I think the "Build-A-___" concept would work best for unique characters. I think it would be a great way for Hasbro to release extreme background characters that wouldn't sell well on a card by themselves. Hoover from Jabba's Palace comes to mind, as does the little Trade Federation clean up droids from TPM.

Troopers do get problematic. That Terminator endoskeleton-looking EU BAD goes for good money on ebay. Likewise the Darktrooper do-over.

The idea of a "create your own character" has merit. Swappable parts to make Sith, Jedi or bounty hunters (or Senator..ha-ha!). That would be neat. Pack the alien/human head and hands together like the astromech head and middle foot. Maybe the arms would include gloved hands for another option.

Would it matter then, necessarilly, if they were actually IN the movie then?

For instance, if the "Build-A-Weirdo" concept were to take flight...

You could get basically a wave where the weirdo is just some Tibrian guy in a pretty "average" Cantina outfit. He'd have the same basic BAD parts (head/gun, 2 arms, 2 legs, torso). The kicker would be that the next BAW figure in the next wave would be, lets say a Duros guy (Bannis Keeg or just random). Hands would be swappable, head swappable (if it's like the BAD's, the neck could plug in, so random alien necks/colors wouldn't be an issue so long as he wasn't wearing a "V-neck" I guess).

I like the weird alien background guys a lot... I think that's a cool idea. It could work to deliver film and EU characters (Bannis Keeg seems like a pretty good example actually) and if it was kept fairly generic in the figure's design you could take the hands/head from the hypothetical Tibrian in wave A and mix them with the hypothetical Duros in Wave B... Likewise you could take a torso like Bom Vimdin's and swap arms that would make a unique looking alien wearing a similar vest...

I think the mix/match potential is better on figures/characters like this than it is on the droids. Some of the droid parts mixed around ok, others not so much.

The Trooper idea is less for the concept of building new, and more for simple value, honestly. Just thinking about the line today and cost, compared to the line not too long ago, and what you got, plus a lower cost. Like I said, the Gammorrean Guard's nice, but how many of those has Vintage delivered at the inflated prices?

Anyway it's just fun to speculate... Vintage will end eventually, and I totally do not expect Hasbro to give a pack-in to collectors with significant umph to it like BAD had. Just like thinking about what would be neat if it did happen.

In the Star Wars universe I think this idea was best suited to the droids. There was the whole Droid Factory concept from the vintage days that Hasbro was able to resurrect but in the Build-A-Figure format that had become popular with other licenses.

Marvel Legends made the Build-A-Figure concept really popular, but in their case I think it worked because of HOW they did it. Marvel Legends focused on a couple of different avenues: characters that were far too big to fit on an individual card; or characters who might not sell well on their own, but the chase of putting together a Build-A-Figure enhanced the appeal of those characters.

So what types of characters in the SW universe would this concept work with? Again, droids worked well. Parts were interchangeable, and there's some history to the droid factory concept. But what other kinds of characters would work?

Troopers - I think the heyday of most Republic & Imperial troopers has passed. Between the current Saga Legends and Vintage Collections I think the collector market has become inundated with these guys. The only way I think I might find this concept appealing is if there was removable / interchangeable armor for these characters.

Large Characters - This was a focus of other build-a-figure programs, but what to address? Most large characters have been addressed in some form: Ephant Mon, Hermi Odle, Jabba the Hutt, Wampa, etc. And other creatures might be just too big to take on in this format.

So what do I think COULD be an appealing avenue? EU characters. Some of them have been tough sells to the broader audience that buys Star Wars figures. But if you add the chase factor of trying to track down parts for a build-a-figure, you may start to drive the market to try to buy figures in order to complete that build-a-figure.

Logged

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I'd prefer they just go back to droids - it'd be an easy way for them to keep knocking off fan-requested movie/EU Droids without having to card them (like they did with HK-47 and YVH-1 Droids): BD-3000, Leebo, new ESB 2-1B, new Probe Droid, new 8D8, Bollux/Blue Max, FA-4, etc.

Tons of great droids left for them to do... plus I look at it this way - at $9 each, I'm not looking forward to buying a small FA-4 or a Bettybot by itself. But as a BAD fig, it'd be neat.

plus I look at it this way - at $9 each, I'm not looking forward to buying a small FA-4 or a Bettybot by itself. But as a BAD fig, it'd be neat.

This was kind of part of what I was thinking with the post... At the current prices, buying some of the weirder stuff, or repainted stuff, stings. But with the Build-A-____ format, I figured it gives you a couple things.

A) Incentive to care about maybe buying that next figure you're on the fence about. Call it the collect-them-all mentality or whatever. The droid parts prompted me to buy army builders I otherwise would've probably passed on.

B) It adds tangible value to a figure... It's like extra weapons, or stands, but if you buy a full wave you get a bonus figure, so it's simply a better concept than extra weapons or stands.

For me, the idea of what's good or not, as the figure you build, is a secondary issue... Regardless of whether people are now souring on army builders, it's still a pack-in that at least adds a little value. Someone mentioned PK droids for instance, and I have to say I think they're on the lamer end as figures go, but at the same time they'd be a pack-in that I might care about. Like your Betty Droid as well... Kind of a lame basic figure, but as something you build, it's not so bad because you were wanting the figures you bought to get there anyway. It's the cherry on top.